Articles for January 8th, 2013
Perot Museum Shows How Not to Handle PR, Ctd.
Glenn took the Perot folks to task for not handling an accident in the museum as well as they could have. I agree with him. A patron was injured, and you need to consider the person’s privacy. No question. But when asked by reporters, they could have issued the following release:
In the Sports Hall, a patron was interacting with an exhibit that challenges people to jump as high as they can. In doing so, his ring got caught on part of the exhibit, and his finger was severed. We deeply regret that this happened. The exhibit has been closed until we can determine how this accident occurred. The Museum staff is staying in close contact with the injured man and his family.
Because that’s what happened. There were people in attendance who saw it happen. Did the Perot folks think the story would not get out? I’m certain the museum is concerned about what legal action(s) lie ahead. Will the man sue the museum? Will the museum be forced to sue the people who made the exhibit? What about the crew that installed it? Yes, yes. But you can still tell the public what happened without exposing yourself to (more) liability.
UPDATE (6:09) — I should have mentioned this when I posted the item: when the museum was located in Fair Park, on a contract basis, my wife handled PR for what was then the Perot-less Museum of Nature and Science. And in 2004, for one year, when it was still called the Science Place, she was a part-time employee.
Dallas Stars Working on ‘Drastically Different’ Uniforms, Will Keep Green As Dominant Color
Spend two months on the job, never write about the Stars. Come in today, write about them twice. Aight. The Morning News reported the other day that Stars are cooking up some new jersey schemes, with three key points:
1. They are drastically different from the current look.
2. There will be a new logo.
3. Green is the dominant color.
They’re supposed to be ready for next season, but could be pushed to 2014-15. Some reaction from SportsLogos.net, with cute Canadian spelling intact:
If true, I’m very glad they’re retaining green as the main colour — earlier rumours suggested the club was considering a switch to red, white, and blue which would have been a nightmare. Nothing worse than taking a unique, good-looking colour scheme (with history of championships) and swapping it for one used by several other teams already in the league. Not to mention the fact that “stars” would be incorporated into the design making it just another Washington Capitals or NHL All-Star Game uniform.
Layoffs and Furloughs at Star-Telegram
I saw this on Poynter. After clutching my knees to my chest and rocking back and forth for a few minutes, I cut and pasted the memo to staff from Publisher Gary Wortel:
To All Employees
While we are seeing local economic conditions improve, some of our business sectors continue to grow at a slower than anticipated rate.
This challenge means we must look at additional cost-cutting measures, including a reduction in our workforce. Some single incumbent positions will be eliminated and several positions that are currently open will not be replaced. Work groups in several operations and circulation departments will be offered a voluntary separation package today. If enough employees do not take the voluntary option, the positions will be eliminated through the least-tenured employees in those work groups.
We are also announcing a furlough program to begin February 11 and end July 31. Employees required to take this one week of unpaid furlough will receive the furlough form today. Please complete your form as soon as possible and give to your supervisor for approval.
Any questions regarding the voluntary/involuntary or the furlough program may be directed to your department manager, Darla Sullenger or Matt Byars in Human Resources.
We know these staffing reductions are difficult and unsettling. I’m optimistic that 2013 will bring the improvement we need in our business sectors to gain positive momentum. The executive team and I appreciate your strong commitment to the Star-Telegram.
But, hey! Look on the bright side. A bunch of employees will get to take a week of vacation sometime between nowish and this summer.
Former Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert Takes Job With Kaplan Inc.
“Hand me an emery board.”
Former Dallas mayor and U.S. Senate hopeful Tom Leppert has accepted a position with education company Kaplan, the Morning News reports. Leppert will become president of the New York-based company, but remain in Dallas. The multi-billion dollar company is owned by the Washington Post Company, and has its fingers in everything from standardized test prep to online courses to law. It’s most recent evaluation was $2.5 billion.
“I had a couple of opportunities that would have been nice, interesting positions,” he told the paper. “But there was nothing out of the ordinary, nothing where you woke up and said, ‘Wow, let’s get to work!’”
Possibilities for those nice, interesting positions:
Candy Evans Rips Off D CEO for Jack Matthews Dirt
To be perfectly clear, what I’m about to show you is not a case of plagiarism. It’s just a case of laziness. And dishonesty.
Jack Matthews, as you may know, is the developer behind South Side on Lamar and the Omni. He’s reportedly kicking the tires on Museum Tower. Candy Evans, as you may know, is a former D Empire employee who now covers real estate on her own site, CandysDirt.com. She also contributes to CultureMap and Pegasus. So then. Here is part of what Candy wrote about Matthews on Pegasus.
Matthews is the developer behind some of North America’s and North Texas’ most impressive projects. First and foremost is the $500 million Omni Dallas Convention Center Hotel, which opened ahead of schedule and is making money hand over fist. Matthews also developed The Bow, a 58-story, 2.2 million-square-foot headquarters for Encana Corp. in Calgary, Alberta and now the tallest building in Canada outside of Toronto.
A Canadian, Matthews grew up in London, Ontario, the fifth of sixth children and the only boy in his family. He began working for his father’s construction company at age 16, and earned both an undergrad degree and MBA from the University of Western Ontario, where he earned an undergrad degree in economics and an MBA. Matthews developed Southside on Lamar out of the old historic Sears catalog building on Lamar Street, the Beat Condos, and The Tribute, a 1,500-acre masterplanned community on the shores of Lake Lewisville featuring a Scottish links-style golf course designed by Tripp Davis and The Old American Golf Club, designed by Davis and Justin Leonard.
Here is what our own Christine Perez wrote in D CEO back in October 2011:
Perot Museum Shows How Not to Handle PR
The Perot Museum of Nature and Science has been quick to trumpet all the news of its greatness, most of it well-deserved, in science education, especially for young people. But in another area–transparency in dealing with the public after some news happened there that wasn’t so great–the new showplace gets a big fat “zero” so far.
We’re talking about an incident at the museum on Dec. 30, when, according to a Dallas Morning News report, an unidentified “adult male” was injured and taken to the hospital after suffering some sort of injury at one of the exhibits. The museum wouldn’t say which exhibit was responsible for the injury, or exactly what happened to the guy, or who he was, or much of anything else. But it did shut down the unnamed exhibit.
Bursting the Bubble: Does Dallas Really Boast a Top ‘Art Place?’
Today Art Place America, a collaboration of 13 national and regional foundations (including groups like the National Endowment for the Arts, The Ford Foundation, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation), released its list of “America’s Top ArtPlaces 2013” – an “art place” being a neighborhood “where the arts are central to creating places where people–residents and visitors–want to be.”
And, yes, Dallas made the list that includes places like part of Brooklyn, the Mission District in San Francisco, Hollywood, CA, and others. In fact, the neighborhood of Dallas identified as a top “art place” was number two on the list, ranking just below Brooklyn and just above Hollywood (CORRECTION: The top 12 cities were not ranked, the neighborhoods with the top 12 scores were just listed alphabetically.) What Dallas neighborhood, you ask? Well, the Arts District, but also Deep Ellum and Exposition Park thrown in for good measure. And that broadly-defined definition of our great arts neighborhood as three not-so-connected individual neighborhoods should send up the first red flag about the report.
Dallas Streetcar Line May Expand
The proposed streetcar line from Union Station to North Oak Cliff may soon be getting a $30.87 million boost from the North Central Texas Council of Governments, documents indicate.
According to a presentation slated to be given Thursday, NCTCOG’s Regional Transportation Council could reallocate $30.87 million from a shelved Love Field project to the Dallas streetcar project. Those funds would allow the streetcar line to expand: to the Zang/Davis intersection in the south, and to the Dallas Convention Center in the north. The current 1.6-mile route is slated for construction this year, funded largely by a federal TIGER grant.
Dallas City Council input is also being sought. Jump for the full presentation:
Things To Do In Dallas Tonight: Jan. 8
I’ll be honest. Today is a slow one, folks, not mention a bit gloomy. But it’s also Elvis’ birthday, so there’s that. (David Bowie’s, too, for that matter.)
And the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History is celebrating this special day with free admission for anyone actually named Elvis, Lisa Marie, Priscilla, or Presley and the chance to meet Elvis impersonators, such as Kraig Parker. You can take advantage of all that, plus birthday cake and banana pudding (the King’s favorite treat, apparently), if in fact you do not have to go to work or school.
Texas Education Is Almost Failing, ‘Has Much to Improve on in Its Current Education Policies’
Source: Students First
Every year, the folks at Students First – a “movement to transform public education” – release the state policy report card. It ranks states based on a variety of factors including elevating teachers, empowering parents, and spending wisely. Texas, apparently, does none of these well. The state received a D rating from the group, good enough for 31st place in the country, but probably not enough to keep its scholarship, unless it was on the basketball team. Louisiana somehow came out on top.
Their critique:
Texas has much to improve on in its current education policies. The state has created multiple alternative pathways for aspiring teachers and has adopted a strong system of accountability for these preparation programs. But the state has not yet adopted a better evaluation system, preventing districts from identifying, developing, and retaining effective educators. Texas does not prohibit seniority from driving layoff decisions, placing effective teachers at risk. The state should also free teachers locked into its existing outdated pension system by offering more attractive, portable retirement options. While the state has a robust fiscal performance system in place, Texas must better inform parents by giving them meaningful school performance information. The state must also remove its arbitrary cap on charter school establishment and focus on the growth of high-performing charter schools through rigorous accountability. Finally, Texas should grant authority for mayors to take control in districts that are not meeting expectations.
State Rep. Lyle Larson Wants to Create Permanent Tent Jails, and Other Fun Bills Filed Before the 83rd Texas Legislative Session
Back in 2011, State Rep. Lyle Larson (R-San Antonio) filed a bill that would allow jails in Texas to permanently house inmates in tents.
“It’s not like it’s cruel and unusual punishment. People in Afghanistan and Iraq are being subjected to the same conditions throughout the world in our military branches,” he said at the time, apparently not fully understanding what it’s like to live in a tent in Iraq or Afghanistan.
Well, that bill’s back before the 83rd Texas Legislature, which returned to Austin today. I spent the better part of this morning skimming through all of the filed bills, looking for the tastiest nuggets. Here’s “the best,” by which I mean strangest, most ridiculous, and most strangely, ridiculously specific. There are plenty of people reporting on actual news.
Someone at the Dallas Cowboys Organization Doesn’t Care Much For the Dallas Stars or NHL
At least our #9 got the job done….. RT:” @dallascowboys Similarly in the category of nobody-cares…the NHL is back!” twitter.com/DallasStars/st…
— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) January 8, 2013
@dallasstars our sincere apologies for the inappropriate tweet posted accidentally to our account. Good luck this season.
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) January 8, 2013
Apology accepted“@dallascowboys: @dallasstars our sincere apologies for the inappropriate tweet posted accidentally. Good luck this season.”
— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) January 8, 2013
Oh My God, They’re Poisoning The Chocolate Milk
Source: Dallas Area Residents for Responsible Drilling
Or the City Plan Commission is reconsidering their Dec. 20 vote on Trinity River floodplain fracking. One or the other. Full agenda right here, and the Trinity East Energy plan from the Dec. 20 meeting is right here.
Yes, This Flu Season Is Worse Than Usual
Source: Google.org
Or at least earlier than usual. The map above was created by Google.org’s Flu Trends initiative, a non-profit wing of the very much for-profit Google. It tracks search terms which it deems good indicators of flu activity, then uses aggregated Google search data to estimate flu activity. As you can see, the flu is peaking right now, more than a month earlier than average, and at a much more intense rate.
(more…)
Leading Off (1/8/13)
Burglars Rob Special Needs Center. There’s a reserved place in hell for the people who robbed a special needs learning center three times in the past month. Among other things, the thieves took an iPad a 7-year-old with multiple birth defects used.
Rockwall Man Purchased a Winning Lottery Ticket Worth $2 Million. And he purchased the ticket on Christmas day. Now everyone wants to purchase a ticket from the same 7-Eleven, which, according to the news report, has a sweet owner who’s genuinely happy for his regular who just won a lot of money. The man doesn’t plan to use the money to retire. But he does plan to take a few vacations.
The Hottest Bachelor EVER Is From Dallas. Our wonderful Laura Kostelny will be along a bit later on FrontRow to break down the first episode of Dallas Bachelor Sean’s premiere. I texted her last night around 11:30. She was still processing the show. I watched it after talking to her. I will never be able to process it.
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